Margrave’s Bastard Son was The Emperor - Chapter 516

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 515
Between Brothers
The commercial district at the heart of the capital bustled with people as always.
Elders sat between alleyways tossing breadcrumbs to pigeons, while young people burst into laughter with paper bags stuffed full of purchases. The cacophony of street performances melted naturally into the surroundings. Before a stall selling skewers, a large man crouched with an expression suggesting he might drool at any moment. The Old Woman who owned the stall laughed awkwardly and merely fanned herself.
“These look delicious.”
“Would you like some?”
“How much?”
“Three skewers for one silver coin.”
“Ian! Should we grab these and eat while we walk?”
Whoosh! Berik sprang to his feet and turned around. Ian, who had been conversing with the Merchant, glanced at him. While Ian’s gaze alone conveyed disapproval, Romandro ground his teeth in exasperation.
“Eating again?”
“Again? What have I eaten?”
“Ever since we entered the commercial district, the amount you’ve consumed would rival a family’s weekly snacks. All sorts of fruits, bread, candy, ice cream too. Really, you’re not even a child. Even our Vivi doesn’t eat like you!”
“If Vivi ate like me, that would be a disaster. Why are you spouting such nonsense so earnestly? Besides, I haven’t eaten any meat! Anything that isn’t meat just passes through my throat lightly.”
“Ian! Say something to him!”
But what could be done? This was Berik, after all—the man whose eyes glazed over at the sight of food. Ian flicked a silver coin from his pocket, and Berik caught it effortlessly with one hand. Romandro twisted his mouth in displeasure.
“Now that you’re actually earning proper wages, why do you keep raiding Ian’s pockets?”
“It’s nice when someone with money buys. So you won’t eat, Romandro? Then I’m grateful. Here! Give me everything you have.”
“All of this?”
“You won’t be able to carry it anyway, right? Can’t be helped. I’ll eat some.”
Wham! Berik handed the silver coin to the owner and began devouring the skewers ravenously. The Merchant who had been conversing with Ian couldn’t tear his eyes away, finding the sight utterly fascinating.
“Please continue with what you were saying earlier.”
“Ah yes. Well, the volume of fruit in circulation has decreased somewhat due to war anxieties, but there are no major problems yet. It’s at a manageable level, and above all, the imperial palace seems to be monitoring price fluctuations quite sensitively. I hear they’ve even begun providing some subsidies for us merchants starting two days ago.”
At the Merchant’s words, a faint smile played at the corners of Ian’s mouth. He looked satisfied, pleased that the imperial palace was fulfilling its role properly.
The Merchant chewed on a cigarette and brushed dust from the stall counter.
“Still, making a living isn’t quite like it used to be. Fewer customers from foreign lands, you see.”
“Burgos and Ruswena?”
“After the war, they’ve been declining bit by bit. Burgos visitors are especially hard to find now. Ruswena merchants are also stingy with their purses. It’s unavoidable, but it’s certainly regrettable. On the other hand, more people have been coming up from the borderlands to the capital, so sales remain roughly the same. But where did you come from?”
“I just came up from the borderlands myself. I was asking because I’m thinking of settling in the capital, so don’t worry about it.”
Clink.
Ian paid for a glass and smiled broadly. The Merchant then poured freshly squeezed fruit juice into a cup and nodded welcomingly.
“Yes, you made a good decision. The capital is certainly better to live in than the borderlands. Soon, Prince Gin will ascend to the throne, and everyone is anticipating how much more prosperous the capital will become after that.”
“I feel the same way.”
As Ian raised his cup, he spotted Gin and Xiaoxi in the distance. They were dressed like young nobles from a wealthy household. With their remarkably tall stature, the subtle gazes of passing women followed in their wake.
“Ian!”
“You’ve arrived? Have you finished inspecting everything?”
“Yes, it was as I’d heard. The illegal extensions have made the entrance to the plaza quite inconvenient. However, looking at them, these appear to be elderly folk trying to make a living, so it might be better to find an alternative to demolition.”
The Merchant squeezing juice pricked up his ears at this unusual conversation. No matter how he looked at it, this was a suspicious group. One of them ate as though he’d never be satisfied, another appeared quite young yet inquired about various matters of livelihood. And now a silver-haired man with a mask had just joined them.
This is definitely strange.
This is really strange.
“Well then, shall we go get some food?”
“Yes! Young Master is the best! Let’s go! Oh, I’m starving to death.”
“Berik. That thing you’re holding looks like it could be five chickens.”
“Should we go back to that place from before? The one that sold mead?”
“He’s not even pretending to listen. Madman. When you get home, starve him thoroughly—no wait, Young Master. That fellow deserves to go hungry.”
I’ve spent my entire life greeting guests, yet I’ve never encountered a group so difficult to read. They seem to have a master-servant relationship, yet they appear equal to one another.
Unable to contain my curiosity, I stopped Ian as he prepared to leave and asked.
“By the way, are you family? Those two seem to be your brothers, but the red-haired man and that middle-aged gentleman…”
“People I work with.”
“Ah, I see. Haha. My apologies. I just can’t help my curiosity. Do come again! Your brothers didn’t try my fruit juice, did they? The fruit is very fresh—”
Tap.
Just then, Jin approached the merchant and pressed against the wall roughly. The merchant stumbled backward in surprise. The blue eyes visible beyond the mask were deeper and more vivid than expected, emanating an overwhelming presence.
“W-why are you doing this?”
“Say it again.”
“I-I’m sorry. My mouth just runs away with me…”
“Say it again.”
“The fruit is very f-fresh…”
“Before that.”
The merchant’s eyes darted toward Ian. Ian then mumbled the word “brother” and gave the merchant a hint. His expression was remarkably calm, as if he’d experienced this many times before.
“B-brother?”
“Yes. Do I look like a brother to you?”
“…Of course. The lustrous hair, the g-grace and elegance you exude—it’s identical. I haven’t seen the Young Master’s face, but there’s a certain atmosphere, isn’t there? Yes, anyone would say you and the younger brother look like siblings.”
Then the corners of his mouth beneath the mask curved softly. It was an extremely satisfied smile. The merchant blinked in confusion, and Jin took a gold coin from his pocket and instructed him.
“Share the drinks with children and the poor.”
“Gasp! Y-yes, understood.”
“I’ll be watching to see if your business prospers. I wish you luck.”
“Th-thank you! Please come again!”
The merchant ran out to the main street to see us off, and I looked up at Jin, who was smiling contentedly.
“Is it really that amusing?”
“What is?”
“That I’ve become your younger brother.”
This was the fifth time. At every shop we visited, people asked who was the elder and who was the younger between me and him, so Ian had suggested we split up for a while.
Jin thought for a moment, then nodded. He didn’t deny it.
“It’s interesting to experience something that shouldn’t be possible.”
“If I had simply accepted the passage of time in the abyss, you would have regretted it.”
“No.”
If that had happened, it would have been heartbreaking.
Jin swallowed his final words and imagined it. In just over ten days, I endured all manner of hardship in the abyss, but ten years? Then I wouldn’t have been able to return to the imperial palace, and I might never have met him again.
At Jin’s firm denial, I smiled faintly and watched the backs of Berik and Romandro walking ahead.
“Shall we go drink some milk too?”
“It’s done. Tell me what you want.”
Just then, a man’s shout echoed from somewhere nearby.
“Your Highness, the Prince!”
Ian and Jin, along with Berik and Romandro who had been walking ahead, and even Xiaoxi who had been discreetly guarding from behind, all stopped in surprise.
Looking around, the sound came from a puppet show being performed nearby. When Xiaoxi tried to approach first, Jin stopped him with a gesture. Then, moving slowly, they approached naturally and blended in with the other spectators.
“Please take a look at this!”
“Hmm! Ask the Magic Department!”
“Oh dear, then please look at that!”
“I’ll ask the Magic Department about that too!”
“But if you ask the Magic Department about this and that, what exactly are you doing your job for?”
“I’ll ask the Magic Department about that as well!”
As the puppet’s mouth opened and closed, spouting ridiculous words, several spectators burst into laughter. By content, it constituted a grave crime of insulting the imperial family, yet the puppeteer continued the performance without hesitation.
“Then, should I also ask the Magic Department when His Majesty will become Emperor?”
“No! Ask the people of Burgos!”
“Pardon? Why would you ask them that?”
“Because they’re providing the funds!”
“Ah, so that’s why you’re planning war?”
Ian, who had been listening quietly, tugged at Jin’s sleeve. This was content that could no longer be overlooked. Just as Ian was about to order Xiaoxi to handle it.
“You don’t know anything.”
A sharp voice rang out from somewhere. The puppets simultaneously turned to look at a woman among the spectators. Following that gaze, the eyes of the crowd moved in the same direction. Though suddenly the center of attention, the woman seemed unbothered and continued speaking.
“One might think His Highness the Prince is merely a puppet dancing to the Magic Department’s tune. How long has the Minister of Magic been back, and already this? Before that, the Magic Department was so ineffectual it might as well not have existed. How could the Magic Department function properly without its Minister?”
Ah, that stung a bit. Romandro felt awkward and sniffled, while Berik playfully patted his shoulder.
“And it’s only natural that the victor of war claims the spoils. If the imperial palace prospers, the citizens of the empire will also live more abundantly. Unless one is from Burgos, there is no Bariel subject who would oppose His Highness’s decision.”
“Who are you?”
“Would it matter if I told you?”
The puppeteer asked irritably, but the woman shot back as if it were absurd. Her response drew another round of laughter from the crowd.
Jin stood with his arms crossed, observing the situation.
“Anyway, your skill is good, but do proper content review. And is your nerve swollen, or did you never have one to begin with? If you keep this up in broad daylight on the street, you’ll be arrested immediately. Yes? The guards will be here soon.”
Clink!
The woman tossed a few coins into a bowl and turned away. Simultaneously, people who had come to their senses scattered hastily and left. The puppeteer, seemingly displeased, stood motionless, staring only in the direction the woman had disappeared.
Seeing this, Jin followed her as if entranced.
Tap, tap, tap!
“Your Highness—no, Young Master!?”
“Sia.”
“Yes.”
Ian asked Xiaoxi to handle the puppeteer’s aftermath and followed Jin with Berik.
Romandro could neither do this nor that, only shaking his head back and forth. It seemed the puppeteer’s disposal would be better handled, so he reached into his pocket for his credentials.
“Hey, you there!—”
Crash!
Then the puppeteer overturned the table, and the cloth covering it fluttered in the air. Longer than one might have expected.
Xiaoxi sensed something was amiss and drew his blade, but it was already too late.
“What?”
“….”
“Xiao, where did this bastard go?”
“A suspicious individual, sir.”
“I have eyes too, you fool! What is this? What in the world is happening?”
Not sinking into the earth, nor rising into the sky. What manner of sorcery was this? Romandro flipped over the puppet of Jin lying on the ground and immediately recoiled in horror.
“This… this texture… is this truly a puppet crafted from human skin?”

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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